The present invention is directed to electronic garage door openers and, more particularly, to a safety beam bracket and method of assembly for an electronic garage door safety beam.
In order to prevent the closing of a garage door upon an obstruction, it is known in the art to pass a sensor beam across the garage door opening. Usually, the sensor beam is oriented in a direction generally parallel to the garage floor. Passage of the beam across the garage door opening is monitored, and when the beam is broken, an electronic garage door controller either stops the electric motor moving the door or reverses the direction of the motor to move the door back upward.
It is desirable to have the beam mounted within approximately one foot of the garage floor so that small children and pets in danger of being hit by the door will break the beam. It is also desirable to have the beam mounted some distance off of the garage floor to prevent the path from being obstructed by contaminants such as moisture, dirt and road salt. In some areas, the height of the beam is mandated by legislation to be a particular distance off of the garage floor.
Commonly, brackets are used to hold both the beam transmitter and the beam receiver. Installation of the brackets to be at a proper height is often a difficult and time consuming process. Likewise, attachment of the beam transmitter and the beam receiver to the brackets and alignment of the beam transmitter and the beam receiver is often a time and labor intensive process. There is a need for a an improved safety beam mounting system to reduce the difficulty and time needed for installation of a garage door opener safety beam system.
A mounting system for the safety beam units of a garage door opener according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention has two brackets. Each bracket has a base with a circular opening, and a support. The supports of both brackets are adjustably coupleable to each other. The mounting system also has a beam unit housing with a cylindrical mounting base fittable through the circular opening in the base of at least one of the brackets. A spring is coupled to the cylindrical mounting base. The spring has at least one end extending beyond a side of the cylindrical mounting base. The beam unit housing is held in position by the spring end extending into contact with the base of least one bracket.
In an embodiment, the spring is a leaf spring, the spring is coupled to a center of the cylindrical mounting base, and the spring has two pointed ends extending into contact with the base of at least one bracket. The base has a plurality of detents; and the spring end is held in at least one of the detents. The base of at least one bracket also has at least one receiving gap in communication with the circular opening. The end of the spring is insertable through the receiving gap. Additionally, the base of at least one bracket has a plurality of mounting holes.
The support of each bracket has a notch and a retaining clip. The retaining clip of each support is insertable into the notch of the other support. The two supports are coupled to each other by a fastener. Additionally, the support of each bracket has a plurality of measuring guide markers. In an embodiment, each of the brackets is made from a single piece of resilient metal folded to form the base and the support, and the fold has a plurality of gussets.